Burning
by bonbondagreat
Summary: What if Arthur didn't die defeating Morgana? What if he didn't find out about Merlin's magic? What if he never loved Gwen? This is the story of Arthur meeting his fated love, and the trials that faced Camelot after his victory over Morgana. Please read and enjoy!
1. Chapter 1

**I DO NOT OWN MERLIN AND THE CHARACTERS. BBC DOES. THIS IS JUST MY IMAGINATION RUNNING WILD. **

**ENJOY AND COMMENT/FOLLOW! :)**

**CHAPTER 1:** The Encounter

"Arthur, remind me again why we are in the Valley of the Fallen Kings in the middle of the night?" Merlin asked as he looked around suspiciously into the dark forest.

"For the love of god Merlin, how many times do I have to tell you?" Arthur exclaimed in exasperation.

"How about once more?" Merlin said sheepishly. The knights laughed. Arthur sighed loudly and shook his head.

"Once again Merlin, we are out here because the tradesmen have been getting attacked, and it's causing other traders to stop coming to Camelot. So we are going to stop them, and then the trade route will be safe for the tradesman."

"And we're out here in the dark why?"

"Because Merlin, we are going to sneak up on their camp that's why. Now do you need me to tell you again or do you understand now?"

The knights behind the two snickered. Even though one was the King and the other his servant they were as close as brothers, though neither would ever admit it.

The group was still in high spirits at the past conversation when Leon, who had been scouting ahead, barged through the trees: "Sire, I think I found someone."

"A bandit?" Arthur asked.

"I'm not sure Sire. They figure was cloaked and sleeping next to a tree."

"Well then we should wake them and see what's their business here in this cursed Valley."

"But Arthur," Merlin interrupted, "what if they're not a bandit? They could just be a traveler. We could scare them to death!" Arthur sighed.

"That's why we are going to wake them up Merlin." This time it was Merlin's turn to sigh.

"Clotpole."

Arthur swiveled on him: "What did you say?"

"Oh nothing at all, Your Highness." The knights again sniggered at Merlin's fun with their King.

As they moved through the forest silently following Leon, Merlin got a feeling that they shouldn't be sneaking up on this person. It was just a feeling, he thought to himself, but he knows that his feelings are usually more than just "feelings".

About 10 minutes later the group came upon the figure sleeping. From where Arthur stood it appeared as if the person had no armor or weapon, and was dead asleep. But something was making him feel uneasy about waking the figure. Something felt wrong.

"Merlin," Arthur said quietly, "go wake him."

"Me? Why?" Merlin whined.

"Because I told you to. Now go!"

Merlin crept out of the tress toward the figure, and with each step he took the "feeling" got worse. When he was about 5 feet from the figure, and all the knights were ready to kill, Merlin cleared his throat: "Umm, excuse me, are you awake?"

He got no reply and so he tried again, but this time with a louder voice: "I'm sorry for waking you, but are you doing here in the Valley?"

Again: no reply. So Merlin edged closer. By this time he was a mere foot away. Just when he was about to ask again, the figure moved from its place on the ground and put a knife to his throat. They still said nothing though as Arthur and the knights stepped forward into the little clearing with their swords aimed for the figure.

Merlin who was pretty uncomfortable tried again: "We mean you no harm. We are looking for bandits and were wondering if you happened to be one."

For a second no one moved, but suddenly time seemed to slow. The figure released Merlin and ran sword pointed to Arthur, but instead of striking Arthur they skewered the bandit hiding behind him. That's when all hell broke loose.

Merlin watched curiously from his spot near Arthur how the figure seemed to be protecting the knights, and helping kill the bandits. They moved so fast and elegantly, that to Merlin, it almost looked as if they were dancing. Soon enough all the bandits in the clearing were defeated and the knights and the figure just stood there surveying the mess. The silence only lasted for a second, before Arthur turned to the figure.

"Who are you?" he asked, but he received no reply.

"I asked you a question. The least you could do is reply." Again silence. Arthur sighed and was clearly frustrated.

"Who are you?" Arthur said even louder this time, making the figure cringe.

Merlin watched from his place behind Arthur as the figure stepped forward and seemed like they were about to speak, when something caught their attention to their left. The knights heard it to and were ready when over ten bandits ran though the clearing heading straight for Arthur.

In less than a few minutes they were taken care of by the tired knights and the figure, who was now mere feet from Arthur's side.

Arthur turned to the figure and was about to ask again, when they heard one of the bandits move and throw a knife straight at Arthur's chest. No had time to move or even think before Arthur was suddenly on the ground with the cloaked figure on top of him.

Merlin was shocked. The figure had taken the blade meant for Arthur, and it was now buried deep in their shoulder. Already, blood was dripping from hits hilt onto their back. He watched as Arthur tried to help the figure stand, but failed when they moved away from him swiftly and stood on the edge of the clearing.

Merlin watched as the figure quickly inspected their wound before placing their hand on the hilt, and pulling the blade out quickly. He guessed the blade was covered in poison, as it seemed to have a deep blue stain on it. Whoever this was, he thought, was going to need some help.

Arthur noticed this too before stepping closer to the figure, who was still covered by their long dark blue cloak.

"Thank you for saving my life. I owe you a debt." Arthur said hoping to get an answer. When there was none he tried again.

"As you probably know now, that blade was covered in poison. And in return for saving my life, I can save yours." Still he received no reply.

"Please let me help you. I promise no harm will come to you. Please, let me save you." After a moment the figure nodded and stepped forward, but thanks to the fast effects of the poison they lost their balance and fell forward. Luckily Arthur caught them before they hit the ground. While falling though, the cloak had slipped off their face, and what the men saw stunned them. The figure, who now lay unconscious in Arthur's arms, was not a man, but a young woman.

Arthur was transfixed on the young woman he now cradled in his arms. She was the most beautiful creature he had ever laid eyes on. The girl was probably around his age, and had flaming red hair that was held captive in a braid running down her back. If down, he suspected, it would go to her waist. From what her could see, her skin was pale and covered with sprinkles of freckles. Her face was heart-shaped with delicate features, rosy lips, and held what he assumed to be beautiful eyes, but since they were closed he had no idea. As he picked her up he noticed that she was slim enough that her weight didn't bother him at all, but he also felt that she held delicate curves. In short: she was beautiful.

He was shot back to reality as he felt her blood seeping into his armor.

"We need to get back to Camelot now if she is to live. Mount your horses. Let's go!" Arthur yelled at his men with a panic filled voice as he strode over to his own horse. He handed the girl reluctantly off to Merlin for a second as he mounted his horse, before cradling her back in his arms.

He would save this girl, he swore to himself as they started off at a deadly speed for Camelot, and he would never let her go.

**Please comment/follow! Thank you for reading. **


	2. Chapter 2

CHAPTER 2: WAKING

Lily felt as if her body was burning from the inside out. Pain had overridden all of her senses, and it was all she felt. She writhed out again as she felt whatever was inside her give her a stab of pain.

What she didn't know was that she wasn't alone in her pain. Gaius, Arthur's court physician, and Merlin sat by her side and tended to her wound and the poison.

"Gaius, how long until this fever of hers breaks? If this keeps up, the pain itself will kill her!" Merlin asked as he held her writhing body down.

"I'd say a few more hours at least. The poison was very deadly and quickly circulated through her system before she got here. I'm surprised she's still alive." Gaius said from his spot on the other side of the bed as he made a pain-numbing potion for the girl.

"Here," Gaius said as he handed Merlin the finished potion, "give her this. It will help."

Merlin administered the potion quickly and soon watched as it caused her to stop writhing and lay immobile. If he didn't see her chest moving up and down so slightly, he would have thought her dead. He sighed as he plopped down into the chair that had been vacated by Arthur not to long ago. The girl had been unconscious for five days already, and every moment that he could spare, Arthur was in here by her side. Merlin had never seen Arthur be so concerned about anything before, and was part of the reason he fought so hard to help keep her alive. He had a feeling that if she died, a part of Arthur would die too.

"Gaius," Merlin paused, "I've been meaning to ask you about these metal bracelets on her wrists. Do you know what they are? I don't think they are there as an accessory."

For the first time, Gaius noticed them. They were thick, wide metal bands that went around her wrists, and had markings on them barely visible.

"I couldn't be…" Gaius mumbled to himself as he inspected the bands. He hadn't seen these in decades, he thought to himself. What had the girl done to deserve these?

"Gaius?" Merlin asked again.

"Well, I believe we have learned something new about our patient here," Gaius said, "and something that we might not tell Arthur about yet."

"What is it?"

"These bands aren't for decoration, Merlin. They are made of magic of the old religion and are meant to keep whoever they are on from doing magic."

"What, so she ahs magic?"

"Yes, and whoever put those on doesn't want her to use it."

"Who could have done something like this?" Merlin thought aloud.

"Only someone who is very powerful can contain another's magic like this."

"Can we take them off?"

"Only the flame of a dragon can melt them away…"

"So she was looking for Kilgharrah?"

"Yes," Gaius paused as he looked up at Merlin, "but the only way to find a dragon is through their master."

"She was looking for me…" Merlin realized as he stepped back from the girl. He now wondered too whether or not she deserved those bands.

Hours later when Lily woke up, the two men were still by her side.

Lily was too afraid to open her eyes. Had she been captured and tortured again? Her body felt like it had. Where was she? Who were these men? How did she get here? How could she escape?

She opened her eyes only slightly more to see that the two men were asleep, and so she looked around. She was in a large room full of healing herbs, a roaring fire, and a few buckets of water. There was, she finally noticed, a cool rag upon her forehead. That's when she remembered what she did for that blonde knight.

How stupid of her! Risking her life for a man she didn't even know, but at the time she felt like somehow she did. It was as if there was something inside of her that willed her to protect him, even though she had no magic to protect herself. She was on her way to meet Emrys, so she could ask him to take off these restraints forced upon her. She felt disgusted as she remembered how they had been put on her by someone she thought had loved her. She shook the memory away. What mattered now was escaping and finding Emrys.

The two men were still fast asleep as she carefully rose from bed without making a sound. Her body ached all over as if she had been run over by a horse. She noticed her bag, clothes, and weapons had been placed in the corner of the room, and so she slowly got out of bed and tried to make her way there. Her legs felt like stone and it took everything she had not to collapse. Just as she was about to reach her stuff she heard a voice from behind her.

"Where do you think you're going?" the slim, raven-haired boy who had previously been asleep asked her as he stood.

She swiveled around to face him only to stumble on her own feet and collapse to the floor in pain. The boy rushed over to her, and called out "Gaius" to the other man causing him to wake.

The boy reached out to touch her, but she cringed away trying to slide over to her stuff.

Merlin and Gaius noticed her fear of them and stopped moving toward her.

"Hello," Merlin said as he gave a warm smile, "my name is Merlin and this is Gaius. He is a physician. Five days ago you were poisoned saving our Lord, and we have been nursing you back to health. We promise we won't hurt you."

Neither of them made a move toward her, but she paused too. They seemed like nice people… but she had been deceived before.

"Where am I?" she asked.

"Camelot." The old man named Gaius replied. He noticed as a wave of fear rolled over her body. "I'm the Court Physician for Camelot."

"I'm in the ca-castle?" she asked in a voice full of fear. "Why?"

"The man you saved was King Arthur." Merlin told her as she flinched again.

For a moment they all stared at each other, before Lily cleared her throat.

"Umm, thank you for helping me, but I must really go now." She said, as she started moving toward her stuff.

"You still haven't fully healed yet, and the poison in still in your body. You must rest." Gaius said as he stepped closer.

"But I can't stay here. I must go."

"Why?" Merlin asked.

"Because I must."

"Why must you? Is it because you have magic?" Merlin asked again and watched the girl freeze over in fear.

"Are you going to kill me?" Lily asked as the two men's eyes widened in shock.

"No! Of course not!" Merlin exclaimed.

"But this is Camelot…" Lily said doubtfully as she still tried to reach her sword.

"This might be Camelot, but you have done nothing wrong. And since those bands on your wrist detain you from doing magic anyway, you are of no threat." Gaius spoke out.

"But this is Camelot…" Lily said again. "People die here for possessing magic."

"Yes," Merlin paused, "but only we know about your magic, and we won't tell our King."

"Why?" Lily asked doubtfully. Why would two servants of Camelot not tell their King there was a sorcerer in their mist? Were they trying to trick her?

"Because you have done nothing wrong." Merlin said as she studied his face for any sign he was lying.

That's when she noticed that something was different about him too. She had seen him before, but where?

"Who are you?" she asked Merlin.

"I'm Merlin." He told her again. Lily shook her head.

"No, who are you?" she asked again this time staring straight into his eyes. That's when she realized who he was.

"You're Emrys…" she said quietly. Merlin looked shocked.

"How did you know?" he asked.

"I've seen you in my dreams. I've been looking for you."

"Why?"

"Because I need your help removing my bands."

"They can only be removed by the fire of a dragon." Merlin said as he nodded his head. "But why should I remove them? How do I know they weren't put on there because you're evil?"

"They were put on me not because I was bad, but because I was trying to be good. I give you my word Emrys, I only have ever done good."

"One's word can be easily broken. How do we know you aren't lying to us?" Gaius spoke out. How could she show the she was telling the truth without her magic? For several minutes Lily sat there and thought. That's when it dawned on her.

"What if I let you see what happened?" she asked the two men.

"But you don't have any magic so how could you do that?" Gaius asked curiously.

"Well, I can't show you, but Merlin can see it himself."

"You want me to invade your mind?" Merlin asked.

"Since I'm giving you permission it wouldn't be invading really. I must trust though that you'll only go deep enough to see what happened, and not go to far. There are some things I would like to keep personal."

"Like what?" Merlin asked.

"My family for instance. I have been blocking those memories out for years, and do not wish to see them again. I will help you Emrys navigate my mind, but you will be in control."

Merlin looked at Gaius who looked apprehensive before nodding.

"Alright, I will do it." Merlin said.

It only took a few minutes inside Lily's head for Merlin to realize that she wasn't bad at all, and those bands were actually put there to stop here from being good. When he pulled out they both smiled.

"I will help you, Lily." Merlin said.

"Thank you!" she replied with a big grin on her face. She was going to be whole again!

Merlin helped her move from the ground back to the bed. She felt safe there, even though she was in the castle of a man who killed her people.

"If I may ask, what happened?" Gaius asked from his chair beside the bed.

"A year ago when Morgana terrorized Camelot I tried to stop her, but being so full of rage she didn't see the consequences of her actions. I knew that I had to stop her, and so I ventured out to find Emrys so I could help him defeat her. However, the man who I was traveling with, whom I loved, betrayed me when I was sleeping and put these cuffs on me. Morgana then put me in Ismere until 3 months ago when I escaped."

"Who are you to believe you could stop Morgana? You must be powerful enough to make her fear you if she put those cuffs on you." Gaius asked again. This time Merlin also awaited her answer. She didn't let him see exactly who she was.

"I am Lily Argentine, High Priestess of the Old Religion." Both men looked shocked.

"I thought Morgana was the High Priestess?" Merlin asked.

"No," Lily laughed, "Morgana, her sister, and Nimueh only wished they were. You see, to be a High Priestess you must be born with its power, which none of them were. They only claimed to be."

"Why didn't you stop Nimueh?" Gaius asked.

"Because at the time I wasn't in this land and had no idea what was happening."

"Where were you?" Merlin asked.

"In the Spirit World. To be a High Priestess you must train with the Spirits."

They talked a bit longer about the Spirit world before Gaius forced her to rest.

"King Arthur will wish to see you soon. You need your rest." Lily heard him say as she drifted off back to sleep.


End file.
